PRETÉRITO VS IMPERFECTO ¿Cómo se decide ?

PRETÉRITO  Actions occurred at a definite time period in past  Salí a las dos de la tarde.  Actions viewed by the speaker as completed  Sí, yo hice mi tarea.  Actions occured a specific number of times in past  Estudié mis palabras tres veces.  Beginning and end of past action and a series of past actions  Empecé mi tarea. Terminé mi tarea. Fui al cine, vi la película, y regresé a casa.

IMPERFECTO  We use the imperfect to talk about actions that  Used to happen  Me gustaba jugar a fútbol los domingos.  Were in progress, were happening  Leía mi libro mientras él cocinaba la cena.  Describe someone or something  Ella era alta y muy inteligente. La casa era grande.  Describe physical, mental or emotional states or conditions in the past  Sabía la información pero estaba muy nerviosa antes del examen. Quería salir.

PARA DECIDIR  It can sometimes be tricky trying to decide when to use one or the other. Here are some things to think about.  When narrating a story in the past the imperfect describes what was happening, while the preterite describes the action that interrupted the ongoing activity.  The imperfect provides background information while the preterite indicates specific events that advance the plot.

¡DECISIONES FÁCILES!  What time it was - always imperfect!  What day it was – always imperfect!  How old you were – always imperfect!  Mientras (“while”) – always indicates imperfect!  Ejemplos:  Era martes. Era el dos de noviembre. Tenía ocho años. Yo dibujaba mientras José miraba la tele.

PRÁCTICA RÁPIDA  The house was white and small.  La casa era blanca y pequeña  He was ten years old.  El tenía diez años.  Yesterday I went to school at 7.  Ayer fui a la escuela a las siete.  Last night I ate, I studied, I watched t.v and went to bed.  Anoche cené/comí, estudié, miré la t.v. y me acosté.